The following censorship instructions, issued to the media by government authorities, have been leaked and distributed online. Chinese journalists and bloggers often refer to these instructions as “Directives from the Ministry of Truth.”
Central Propaganda Department: Regarding Bo Xilai’s court hearing today: content broadcast on the Jinan Intermediate People’s Court Weibo may be republished, but do not use this content as a news source. Media reports must use Xinhua News Agency wire copy. The media must conscientiously strengthen supervision of the contents of their employees’ weibo. (August 22, 2013)
中宣部：对今日薄熙来案庭审事件，济南中级人民法院的微博直播内容可以用于转载，但不要将微博内容作为新闻的来源刊登。媒体发表的文章必须使用新华社通稿。各媒体要切实加强对从业人员微博所发内容的监管。
Propaganda directives on Bo’s trial were also published by CDT on July 26, August 20, and August 21.
Follow CDT’s Bo Xilai Trial liveblog for updates and background on the case.
CDT has collected the selections we translate here from a variety of sources and has checked them against official Chinese media reports to confirm their implementation.
Since directives are sometimes communicated orally to journalists and editors, who then leak them online, the wording published here may not be exact. The original publication date on CDT Chinese is noted after the directives; the date given may indicate when the directive was leaked, rather than when it was issued. CDT does its utmost to verify dates and wording, but also takes precautions to protect the source.
